


take me out

by eddiefuckinkaspbrak



Category: IT (2017), IT - Stephen King
Genre: Alternate Universe, Eddie is a fan of Richie's Radio show, First Dates, First Kiss, First Meetings, He wins date with him, Love at First Sight, M/M, Radio, That's it, that's the fic
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-01-19
Updated: 2019-01-19
Packaged: 2019-10-12 18:53:24
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 4,614
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17473076
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/eddiefuckinkaspbrak/pseuds/eddiefuckinkaspbrak
Summary: When Eddie Kaspbrak enters a competition to win a date with famous radio host Richie Tozier, he has no idea what to expect.Especially not what he got anyway.





	take me out

**Author's Note:**

  * For [richietoaster](https://archiveofourown.org/users/richietoaster/gifts).



> I'm dedicating this fic to Sara (@richietoaster) as it's her birthday today!!!

“ _Listen up all you Trashmouth listeners because this competition is a once in a lifetime opportunity!”_

As the words echoed through Eddie’s room from the radio, he perked up, reaching over to turn the volume up, his interest peaked. Across the room, he vaguely heard Bill let out an audible groan but Eddie flipped him off. So what if Eddie liked listening to this particular radio show every day? Some people liked going to museums, some liked to read, some liked to watch movies and fan over the actors. Eddie? Eddie liked to listen to Richie Tozier’s radio show.

“ _In aid of the ‘Make a Wish Foundation’ I, Richie Tozier, am the prize of the lucky winner of this competition. You heard that right folks, whoever wins gets to go on a date with moi! How lucky are you? What you have to do is simple: ask me on a date! You don’t have long, lines are open till the end of the show and the winner will be announced tomorrow! Good luck!.’_

As the radio cut to the terms and conditions of the competition, Eddie was already pulling out his phone with shaky hands, typing out a message. He could sense that Bill was standing behind him and he looked up with a frown, “What?”

“You’re entering?” The tone of Bill’s voice sounded a little mocking and Eddie frowned further. Sometimes he wished that Bill still had his stutter from school, that way he wouldn’t sound so condescending all the time.

“Why shouldn’t I? You _know_ ****how much I love the show. Why shouldn’t I enter?” Normally, he wouldn’t consider entering the radio competitions as they usually were centred around holidays and cash prizes but this wasn’t either of those. This was a date with none other than Richie Tozier himself. Eddie’s celebrity crush.

Bill shrugged his shoulder, “I dunno Eddie. I mean, thousands of people will enter this, all with their own valid reasons on why they should win. I just think that you’re setting yourself up to fail.”

At Bill’s words, Eddie scoffed and turned back to his phone, staring at the blank text box. He knew that Bill was probably right, and that there was a one in a million chance that he would actually be picked for this thing, but he’d be damned if he didn’t try.

Eddie quickly typed in the message, followed by his details that the radio show would need to know if he ever did win before he moved to send it.

There was a slight hesitation as he hovered over the send button, but it only lasted a moment before he pressed it, the text vanishing from his screen. A few moments later, a notification popped up with the message **‘thank you for entering! Your entry will be passed on and we will announce the winner on tomorrow’s show. Good luck!’**

Eddie had did it, he had entered the competition. Now all he had to do was wait.

* * * * *

Upon entering the studio the following morning, Richie Tozier clapped his hands together in anticipation. “Well Miss Marsh, how many of those text do you have for me?”

Bev looked up and passed him over a booklet she had made the night before, whilst going through the entries with the producers of the radio show, “Well, there were a lot of ‘I love you please pick me!’ ones so after cutting those out, as well as a few creepy ones, we’re left with fifty possible winners.”

Richie’s eyes lit up as he flicked through the booklet, “Fantastic!” He lay back on the sofa in his dressing room, kicking his shoes off so he could sprawl across. He let his eyes linger on a few, impressed by some of the entries. “Some of these are good.”

“Some of them are very good,” Bev mused, taking a seat next to him. “You have an hour to decide which one is the winner. “

“I feel like the Bachelor who is about to make his final decision and hand over the infamous rose,” Richie chuckled, pushing his glasses back up his face. “This was a good idea wasn’t it Bev?”

Bev paused from where she was making some coffee and turned back to Richie, “I know a lot of people thought you were mad, but you have pure intentions Rich. Anyway, it’s not like you and whoever wins will be alone, you’ll have security and all that with you. It’s a pre-planned date.”

Flicking over to the next page, Richie hummed, glad that at least Bev had his back if all of this went up in flames. Bev was right, some of these entries were fantastic and just as Richie was about to comment on how impossible it would be to choose, his eyes landed on the next text. He had barely finished it before a laugh burst out of his throat.

_**I’m not a photographer, but I can picture me and you together. Let's grab dinner? - Eddie Kaspbrak, 22** _

“This is it Bev, this is the winner. Right here.”

The booklet was taken from Richie’s hands and he watched with glee as Bev read over the winning message. Her eyes crinkled and she let out a burst of laughter also, nodding her head. “Yes. Yes this one...this one is a winner.” Richie watched her scan over the details before she passed the book back to him. “Eddie Kaspbrak. Twenty-Two years old.”

“Sounds like my kind of man, Bev,” Richie leaned forward, leaning his elbows on his knees. “Short, straight to the point, humorous. This could be the love of my life.”

Bev rolled her eyes and pulled him up as he barked out a laugh, “Don’t be dramatic, and don’t overthink it okay? It’s just a date for Charity. Now go get ready for the show, you’re live in ten minutes!”

Before they went on the air, Richie confirmed the winner of the competition with the producers, who set up Eddie’s number to call when the time came around to announcing. All of them agreed on his choice, which was a first as usually Richie kept them all on their toes.

“ _Goooood afternoon and welcome to Trashmouth Tozier’s radio show! Ya’ll know the drill but I know exactly what everyone is waiting for so let’s not keep you in suspense any longer huh?”_ Richie spoke into the mic, changing up his accent every few words as he always did to keep it interesting. “ _So many amazing date invites, you all flatter me so much, but there could only be one winner. As much as I appreciated all of the heartfelt messages, I had to choose the one that seemed to know me better than anyone else. The winner went down the humour path and well, you all know I’m a sucker for a cheesy pick up line!”_

Sometimes, when Richie spit out his jokes, he wished that he had an audience to react to and not just the blank stares of the producers and Bev, who had heard this over a million times. Still, he could easily imagine that all of his listeners were laughing along, wherever in the world they may be.

_Anyway, enough blabbering from me. I won’t keep you in suspense any longer. The winner of the competition and who gets to spend a whole evening with yours truly in the lovely Eddie Kaspbrak from none other than here in New York City!”_

* * * * *

“Holy shit.”

In the background, Eddie could hear Bill’s constant muttering of the phrase, as well as his phone buzzing against his desk. However, he was too frozen to do anything about either of those things. In the back of his mind, he knew that it was the radio show, calling him to confirm that he was the winner and if he didn’t pick up then he would lose his chance.

“Hello!” Bill’s voice both next to him and over the radio snapped Eddie out of his trance and he looked up at his friend with wide eyes as he put it on speaker.

“ _Hello, is this Eddie Kaspbrak?”_

Richie Tozier’s voice was clear through both the radio and Eddie’s phone. Bill, still unsure if Eddie was fit to talk, spoke up instead, “Uh no, I’m Bill, Eddie’s roommate. Eddie is here though he is just...in shock.”

He was going to kill Bill when he got his voice back.

“ _Alrighty, well if he’s listening I’ll just keep talking! You’re the lucky winner of this unforgettable date, Eds, can I call you Eds? Sure I can. When you get your lovely voice back could you be a gem and call up the station so we can get all the details fixed?”_

Eddie looked up at Bill and nodded his head, sill unable to speak to him, never mind to Richie Tozier over the radio broadcast. With a nod, Bill turned back to the phone, “Give him ten minutes and he’ll call?”

The rest of the conversation was fast and when Bill hung up, Richie on the radio turned to a song, giving everyone the chance to exhale. “Did that just happen?” He eventually whispered, finding his voice. “Or am I dreaming?”

“It really happened, Eddie,” Bill hummed softly, sitting his phone back in his lap and placed a comforting hand on his shoulder. “You won a date with Richie Tozier, you better call them back.”

It took another ten minutes for Eddie to feel brave enough to call into the radio station. When he was connected, he thought for a moment that he would be put back on the air, but instead a woman answered. “Eddie Kaspbrak?”

“Yes,” Eddie cleared his throat. “Yes, I’m uh, I’m Eddie.”

“Thanks for calling back, Eddie. I’m Beverly, Richie’s best friend and agent. We just wanted to talk about arranging the date that you won with Richie?” Beverly’s voice was soft in Eddie’s ear, comforting and he felt less like a nervous wreck. “It’s all pre-planned by the radio station, all you have to do is agree on a date and time.”

Of course the date would already be planned out, and Eddie knew that it wasn’t going to be like a real date, not really. There would be cameras and security to ensure Richie’s safety in the off chance that Eddie was a psycho. “I’m free Friday night after 3pm?”

He was free all weekend actually, but he knows that Richie has a show on a Saturday afternoon and no-one wants to go on a date on a Sunday.

“Well how about Friday at 7pm?” Beverly suggested and Eddie agreed. “I’ll send you all the details of where you need to be. Since you’re in New York already that makes things so much easier. We’ll be in touch, oh, and congratulations!”

* * * * *

Friday seemed to roll around faster than it ever had in Eddie’s whole existence. He seemed to breeze through all of his classes and was somehow on top of his assignments. As the week went on however, the more nervous Eddie became. A few people in his classes and around campus had stopped him to ask what he was going to do, if he had already met Richie and multiple other things. Everywhere he went he was reminded of the date on Friday night.

It had come around so fast, that when Friday night did arrive and it was time for Eddie to get ready, he wasn’t prepared. Not in the slightest. He couldn’t even ask Bill for advice as he was on a date of his own with his girlfriend, Audra, leaving Eddie to his own devices.

After some chopping and changing, Eddie finally settled on a navy blue button down shirt, the nicest pair of dark wash pants that he owned and his nicest ‘going out shoes’. He styled his hair so the curls were suitably tamed and looked down this contact case before deciding to just stick to his glasses.

In the words of Audra, she would say he looked ‘cute’. He checked the time and realised that if he didn’t leave now, he was going to be late so if he looked bad then there was nothing he could do about it now.

Since the restaurant where they would be eating was only a few blocks from his shared apartment with Bill he declined the offer of someone picking him up, choosing instead just to walk to the place. It also gave Eddie a few extra minutes to compose himself before he came face to face with Richie himself.

That was what was freaking Eddie out the most. He had been such a fan of Richie for so long, he was terrified he’d say something humiliating and ruin the whole thing. Not that he thought he had any real chance with Richie, he just didn’t want to come off as a creepy fan.

Much to Eddie’s surprise, when he arrived at the restaurant there was no added buzz. There was no cameras or fans or...anything really. Quickly, he pulled out his phone to make sure he had gotten the right restaurant. Just as he did, a voice spoke up from behind him, causing Eddie to jump.

“Eddie?”

He spun around, his eyes widening from behind his glasses as they landed on Richie Tozier himself. He nodded, so as not to cause confusion and held out his hand, “I- yeah. I’m Eddie. Hi.”

Richie broke out into a wide smile, enough to almost send Eddie to the floor with the way his knees weakened. Richie was so much more handsome in person with his wild red hair, blue eyes, freckles and thick framed glasses. He was dressed in a bright yellow shirt with a flamingo bowtie and plain black jeans. “Nice to meet you, Eds. You don’t mind if I call you that, do you? Nickname for Eddie and all that.”

“You know, Eddie’s already a nickname right?” Eddie shot back almost instantly, and before he could curse himself for his snarkiness, Richie barked out a laugh.

“Not just funny on paper huh?” He grinned, wiping his eyes. “Shall we?”

With a nod of his head, Eddie followed Richie into the restaurant. He glanced around, wondering if some of the customers were in fact, Richie’s security. The thought of them being watched was a little unnerving and Eddie picked at his cuffs of his shirt. Almost as though he picked up on it, Richie placed a gentle hand on the small of Eddie’s back and leaned down.

“The security isn’t in the restaurant,” Richie whispered into his ear and Eddie inhaled. “I thought that that might be a bit much. It’s just us.”

“Don’t you have to wear a mic or something?” Eddie asked just as the waiter stepped out and asked them to follow him to their table. It was in a rather discreet area, which Eddie was thankful for, away from the most of the public eye.

Richie waited until they were seated before he answered the question, “Nah, I convinced Bev not to bother with all that. As long as the producers get the picture at the end, to prove that we actually went out on the date then that’s all they need.”

Out of all the outcomes that Eddie had thought of, this scenario was not one of them. Richie wasn’t at all like his radio personality, which only made Eddie like him all the more. He was genuinely funny, had interesting hobbies and was very interested in hearing about Eddie’s life.

“I’m a English Lit student at NYU,” Eddie explained, taking a bit out of the appetiser that had been set in front of him. Richie, who had explained that he visited this restaurant often, asked if he could order for Eddie and much to his own surprise, he had agreed. “It’s tough, but I want to be a Pre-School teacher.”

“I think you’d make an amazing English teacher, Eds.” Richie hadn’t ditched the nickname, and with every time he said it, Eddie felt his insides warm up just a little more.

The appetisers turned into mains and then into dessert. The conversation was flowing more smoothly than any _real_ ****date that Eddie had been on, and a few times he had to remind himself that this wasn’t an actual date. There would be no walk back to Eddie’s apartment, there would be no awkward gazes and hope filled eyes of whether they were going to kiss or not. There was no promise of another date.

Even with this knowledge, it didn’t stop Eddie becoming completely invested in Richie and his stories that he had to tell. “How did you get to where you are?” He asked, his cheeks flushed from the wine as they waited for their dessert.

“You mean how did I get my own amazing radio show?” Richie asked, leaning across the table, his eyes staring warmly into Eddie’s own. “I was a broke kid in New York who had wanted to get away from the small town he grew up in. So I moved here and started picking up comedy gigs at the clubs and soon I was being paid for it. Then, a talent scout spotted me and offered me an audition, and the rest they say, is history.”

“Sounds like you were in the right place at the right time.”

Richie grinned and caught Eddie by surprise as he reached a hand over to place it over Eddie’s The gesture spread a warmth throughout his whole body and he swallowed thickly. Richie leaned a little closer, his smile softening, “Seems like that happens a lot, me being in the right place at the right time.”

Eddie never got the chance to find out what Richie meant by that, as the waiter arrived with their desserts and the cheque. They ate up in relative silence and finished off their drinks before Richie excused himself whilst he went to pay for the meal.

Now that he was alone, Eddie let out a breath and closed his eyes. The ‘date’ had been one of the best evenings that Eddie had ever shared with someone who wasn’t one of his friends. Richie and he seemed to get along like a house on fire, teasing each other back and forth as though they had been doing it for years. The thought that when Richie got back and they would go their separate ways made Eddie’s stomach twist.

He jumped as a gentle hand was placed on his shoulder and he looked up to see Richie smiling down at him, holding his jacket, “Ready?”

“Yeah.” Eddie slid out of the chair and tried not to blush as Richie helped him with his jacket. They thanked the staff, leaving a tip before heading to the main door. Just like Richie said, there were some people outside with cameras that Eddie assumed were the producers of the radio show.

“Just smile,” Richie winked, wrapping an arm around Eddie’s waist and looking up at the camera. Eddie followed his instructions, smiling at the camera and trying not to blink when the flash. The man behind the camera took a few snaps before giving them the thumbs up. Eddie thought that Richie would have removed his arm, but he didn’t keeping it secure around Eddie’s waist.

That is, until one of the producers spoke up, “We’re done, Richie. Get in and we’ll give you a ride back to your place.” He disappeared into the car and the arm around Eddie’s waist was gone.

Eddie swallowed and looked down at his feet. He wondered if Bill was back from his date but then he remembered it was a Friday night and they were probably out at some bar together which meant he’d be alone. He looked back up at Richie and smiled, “Thanks for a nice evening.”

Something flashed in Richie’s eyes before he blinked and nodded, holding out his hand and shaking it with Eddie’s, “I couldn’t have asked for a better person to spend it with.”

Within seconds Richie had let go of his hand and slipped into the car, leaving Eddie alone on the sidewalk.

* * * * *

“So how’d it go?” Bill asked the following morning when he finally emerged from his bedroom. Eddie glanced at the clock, realising it was only a few minutes to midday and he looked up at him.

“Afternoon,” he commented. “And it was fine, we had dinner.”

Bill frowned and took a seat next to him on the sofa, “Oh no, was Richie an asshole? I’m sorry Eddie.”

That was one of the things that annoyed him about Bill. He always jumped to conclusions before Eddie had a chance to explain himself. He shook his head, “No Bill, he was actually much nicer than I ever could have imagined. We...we got on really well.”

“Then what’s the problem?”

Eddie let out another scoff and pushed his fingers through his hair, “That  _is_ the problem Bill!” He stressed and stood up. “We...we had a connection! I felt it and before you say anything, no I wasn’t imagining it. There was something there, but it wasn’t a real date. It was all fake so what’s the point?”

He didn’t wait around to hear what Bill’s response was as he turned on his heel and locked himself away for the rest of the weekend.

Come Monday, Eddie was still thinking about the ‘date’ even though he knew that it was becoming unhealthy. Richie had probably forgotten all about him, moving swiftly on with his life. He had listened into his show on Saturday night and he had mentioned that the date had gone well but that was all.

A few of his classmates stopped him as he made his way to the seat but Eddie just brushed them to the side, not really wanting to talk about it. He took his seat and let out a breath of relief at the professor walked in to start the class, stopping all the invading questions.

It was 45 minutes into the class when everything was flipped on its head. Everyone was so focused on the class that when the loud squealing and high pitched voices started outside of the door, the attention all turned to that. The professor frowned and stopped talking, walking over to the door and opening it.

Looking back, Eddie wasn’t sure why he didn’t pass out when the professor stepped to the side and Richie Tozier walked into the class. He looked a little nervous as everyone’s eyes, including Eddie’s, were trained on him. A few of the students whipped their heads around to stare at Eddie, as though they were waiting for something magical to happen.

Which it would, but Eddie didn’t know that.

Richie cleared his throat and grinned at the class, holding up two of his hands. As he did so, most of the class let out a noise as held in his right hand were a bunch of flowers. Eddie watched, frozen, as Richie scanned the crowd, landing on Eddie. As their eyes met, he watched as Richie’s turned much warmer and he took a few steps to the stairs.

Eddie had no idea what to do but wait until Richie reached where he was sitting. His heart was thumping in his chest and his cheeks were bright red from all the attention. Confusion was probably clear on his face but it soon turned to shock as Richie held out the flowers for him to take.

“I didn’t know what you liked so I just uh, went to a florist and asked them to make up a bouquet that would impress a cute boy I went out with on Friday night,” Richie brushed the back of his neck with his hand, a nervous tick and Eddie swallowed, taking the flowers from him and smiling into them.

“Thank you.”

Richie exhaled and seemed to gain a little more courage. For someone who talked to millions of people daily, having a lot of eyes on him shouldn’t have been a problem, but Eddie could sense this was personal. This was the same Richie he met on Friday night, not Trashmouth Tozier.

“I owe you an apology,” Richie started and as Eddie opened his mouth, he held up a finger. “Let me finish. Friday night was...not what I expected. I had no idea who you were, or that you would turn my whole world upside down just from that first conversation. I was expecting a light, fun date with someone that that won a competition for charity. Nothing more, nothing less. Except...what I got was something way better than that. I don’t know about you but, the more we talked the more I wanted it to be a real date. I wanted to be able to ask for your number at the end, to walk you home, to hopefully ask to take you out again but that wasn’t in the agreement. I had been pre-warned that I wasn’t allowed to do any of that and I had told them it wouldn’t be a problem but it _was_.” Richie stopped, sucking in a breath before he continued. “That’s why I got into the car, because if I didn’t, I would have walked you home and asked you out again.”

If Eddie’s heart was beating fast before, then it was thumping now. “I wanted you to. I wanted you to ask me out, and walk me home but I had to remind myself that it was fake. It wasn’t real.”

Richie took another step forward and took Eddie’s hands in his own, “That- that’s really great to hear,” he breathed and looked down for a second before he looked back up. “Because I want to take you out, on a real date this time. Somewhere we both want to go and I’ll walk you home and ask for that second date.”

“Technically it would be a third…” Eddie quipped and Richie chuckled.

“Friday doesn’t count, Eds. That wasn’t a ‘real’ date remember?”

A silence fell between them before Eddie nodded and bit down on the inside of his cheek, “I’m free after five.”

Richie beamed at him and clapped his hands, “Great! Fantastic!” He looked back around at the class. “Uh, I’ll go and let you all get back on with your class. I’m sorry for the disruption.” He started to back up down the stairs, still somewhat flustered and Eddie couldn’t contain his smile at how insane this was. Then Richie looked back up at him and pointed, “I’ll see you at five, babycakes.”

Another blush rose up on Eddie’s cheeks at the new nickname and he watched as Richie made his way to the door. It was a split second decision but not one he would regret as he stood up, just as Richie was about to leave. “Richie, hold up.”

With his hand about to reach for the handle, Richie pulled back as Eddie slipped out of his seat and walked down the steps towards him. He heard a few hushed whispered from the other students but he ignored them, keeping his eyes trained on Richie. He didn’t give the him a chance to ask him what he was doing as he stepped into Richie’s space, placing a hand on his cheek and reaching up on his toes, pressing their lips together just softly.

When he pulled away, Richie’s eyes were just as wide as his own and Eddie landed back on his heels. He reached up to fix Richie’s crooked bowtie, which was sporting little elephants this time round. “Jeez, Eds.”

“I’ll see you at five, babycakes.”


End file.
